B.C. Premiers Eby calls pipeline MOU a distraction that risks being ‘energy vampire’

British Columbia Premier David Eby says a proposed northern pipeline that is the subject of a memorandum of understanding between Alberta and the federal government is a distraction that has already resulted in the loss of another investment opportunity.

Eby says the proposal signed by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith risks becoming an “energy vampire” draining federal, Indigenous and provincial resources, although B.C. will not be launching legal action against the project.

The memorandum of understanding commits Canada and Alberta to working toward a northern pipeline to B.C.’s coast, with Alberta acting as the proponent, and the federal government making changes to a tanker ban on the north coast “if necessary.”

He says Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe was talking to Smith about the pipeline this month when he should have been talking with him about problems that potash company Nutrien was having getting its product to market.

Eby says that resulted in Nutrien deciding to ship Saskatchewan potash to global markets through Washington state, bypassing B.C.

His remarks are part of a wall of opposition thrown up in B.C. against the pipeline MOU, with Coastal First Nations president Marilyn Slett saying the project will never happen and the tanker ban “is not up for negotiation.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2025.